Sunday, 30 July 2017

Chickens and Apples

We went and picked up four more new chickens the other day, we needed to as we lost two of our layers last week. Well sadly we lost three of our girls in one fell swoop but the large Black Maran's laying days were behind her. We don't know what happened but I have a sneaking suspicion that they were stolen :-(

The mystery started with one of our huge Black Marans being spotted absolutely flattened on the road by our neighbour as she walked back to her house after visiting us to buy some eggs. She thought it was her black cat and telephoned asking if we would go and have a look for her as it was in a very dangerous spot near the corner. We did and realised what it was at once thanks to the very large white legs and feet still being recognisable.

Later that day I realised that two more of our birds were missing, one of the new 'Green Girls' and one of last years 'Welsh girls'. The mystery deepened but putting two and two together and wearing my very best Miss Marple hat ... I much prefer that to a deerstalker ... I have concluded that if I were stealing myself a little flock of hens I too would choose one black, one brown and one a nicely co-ordinating black and brown. But I would not take such a huge bird that as I was crossing the road it would easily struggle free and unfortunately get splattered by a passing car or truck.

I am making quite light of it, I need to if I want to retain what little sanity I have left, but it's hard to lose three of our girls, especially my lovely little new girl who was the sweetest of the quartet.

So now we also have in residence over in Chicken World the 'Blue Girls' ... four more Calder Rangers. Bringing our numbers back up to eighteen girls and Jack the cockerel .... who once again immediately set to making his newest wives very welcome.

Also over in Chicken World, the apple trees are looking wonderful, and I couldn't resist snapping off a few photos while I was there.

The apples are turning rosy red and filling out nicely on the branches, with the occasional windfall making a very nice snack for the chickens.

The trees are literally dripping with apples, the more you look the more you see.

Lovely and red and just asking to be picked, and they are ... frequently.

It's nice to grab one for an impromptu snack after cleaning out the henhouse or when I'm on the way over to the polytunnel.

Also filling out nicely are the cooking apples, and I can see a freezer full of apple slices, crumbles and pies coming up in the next few months after a bit of work in the kitchen.

16 comments:

So sorry about the chickens. A horrible thing to happen. The apples look great. Here near Runneymede we've been blackberry picking. I'm glad your new girls are settling in. Very sorry for your loss. Best wishes

Its awful to think people would go to such lengths to steal them. I hope you don't lose any more. Your apple trees look scrumptious. We have spotted an apple tree in the middle of nowhere with lovely apples on.......scrumping will take place! We lost our apple tree but the pear is doing well

What a shame your hens were stolen. Not a problem we had with humans here, but Polecats were the main problem (rather than foxes, which is what you would expect really). We will have another good apple crop, as always (but then we have 5 trees, plus some young ones coming on). I will have to practice drying them in rings this year or the freezer will be full to the gunnels.

Sorry to hear about your hens Sue but glad you can look at it philosophically - after all, what's done is done and you can't do much about it. What a splendid crop of apples you have too - Ithink it must be a very good year for fruit everywhere.

You should consider getting a couple of geese.Best guards around,they are excellent at sounding the alert if strangers are about,should settle in fine with the hens with a managed introduction.Sorry to here of your stolen hens.I reckon for every nasty person out there there are ten nice ones:)

Can't believe someone would stoop so low and steal your chickens. What a horrible experience and especially seeing the big black Maran flattened in the road. Hope that your new girls are all getting along well now and settling in at "Chicken World". I am very jealous of all those apples on your trees. I have two apple trees and I have got one apple on each of the trees. I'm blaming the squirrels they seem to have caused havoc in my garden this year - more so than my chickens.

I'm sorry to hear about your poor chickens. I second the idea of getting a pair of geese in for security guard duty. The apple trees look wonderful. I wish I still had access to one, I've been keeping my eyes open for wild ones but no luck so far X

I'm sorry to hear about your poor chickens. I second the idea of getting a pair of geese in for security guard duty. The apple trees look wonderful. I wish I still had access to one, I've been keeping my eyes open for wild ones but no luck so far X

This was my Blog, just me writing about our day to day life on a hillside in North Wales. Along with our dogs, Suky and Mavis, our cat Ginger .... who secretly thinks he's one of the canine gang, a sheep called Ethel who wandered in off the road and stayed... and a roving band of egg laying chickens that live cheek by jowl with the local wildlife.

We grow our own fruit and vegetables, selling surplus plants and edibles at the gate. We sell the eggs the chickens lay, we reuse, recycle and rethink ... and life ticks over at a pace that suits us.

It was simply the wild and wacky ramblings of a 50 something townie turned country girl called Sue, who lost her heart to a sailor and started a new life in the country .... many years ago. On a path that took us from Cumbria to Oxfordshire, to Berkshire and then we found our home at the bottom of a wet and windy Welsh hillside by a busy main road.

Pull up a chair, grab a coffee and relax into a world of dogs, cats, chickens, polytunnels and veggies with the occasional grass munching sheep thrown in for good measure.

Jason, Alan and Simon. My Men.

Total Pageviews

Disclaimer

Our New Life in the Country is my blog.

I use it to chart the day by day, week by week, year by year goings on in mine and Lovely Hubby's life. In it I also express my views and opinions, and say what I do andoccasionally how I do it. I am hoping that this will prove to be a useful reminder for myself of how we did things, as we continue in our learning process.

If you chose to follow my practices it is assumed that you will do so with care and consideration, and question where necessary any methods or techniques I use to your own satisfaction and match them to your own circumstances.

The pictures in each blog post are taken by me unless otherwise credited, and as such should not be borrowed and used elsewhere without my consent.